Decorative Accents

As noted by David Rockefeller, ‘our enjoyment is closely associated with our recollections of how, where and from whom we acquired our various art objects, as well as the with the relationship of these objects to one another.’ For the Rockefellers, it was essential that fine art was displayed in concert with both practical and decorative elements to promote a harmonious interior symphony. Furniture, porcelain and decorative items were combined with silver, metalwork and glassware. Chinese export ‘Rockefeller pattern’ dinner services would complement an Attic black-figured amphora and a 19th-century English, lacquered-brass and painted-glass lantern. Similarly, Chelsea porcelain ‘hen and chickens’ tureen and cover circa 1755 shared the same space as a pair of Meissen porcelain models of hoopoes circa 1745.